TOP 100 SOCCER SITES
| |||
|
| |||
| |||
|
| |||
| Levein keeps door open to Scots rebels • New manager welcomes back Ferguson, McGregor and Boyd• Burley's successor admits Scottish football is in malaiseCraig Levein used his unveiling as the Scotland manager to adopt an inclusion policy towards the country's ostracised players. Barry Ferguson, Allan McGregor and Kris Boyd are set to feature in international squads again.After a testy day which verged on farcical at times, Levein was eventually confirmed as George Burley's successor shortly after 6pm. The 45-year-old, who has left Dundee United, has signed a contract to cover the upcoming European Championship qualifying campaign with the option for a further two years. He will become the highest paid manager in Scotland's international history with a salary believed to be in excess of £500,000 a year.Levein's thoughts are on football rather than pound signs. Ferguson and McGregor were put into exile by the Scottish Football Association after the infamous Boozegate controversy last season. Earlier, a disillusioned Boyd had said he would not turn up for Scotland duty again while Burley remained in office."For me, this is a new start," said Levein. "I have met Kris Boyd on numerous occasions. I think he is a decent guy. The same for Barry Ferguson, the same for Allan McGregor. I have never had one problem with any of those guys so why would I not want any of those players in the Scotland squad? My remit it to try and qualify next time around; I will not be ruling out any player. Whether or not they will turn up is another matter but I will pick my best players."The final say over squad selection is clearly something Levein ensured he would be afforded during talks with his new employers. "I would not have it any other way," said the manager. "It has to be me who stands and falls by the decisions made."Levein's subsequent insistence that he will visit every club in the top two tiers of English football "even to find out if any of their youth players has a Scottish grandfather" conjured memories of the Republic of Ireland's controversial selection policy of the 90s. Levein, who has also managed Hearts and Leicester City, plans to oversee a radical upheaval of youth and coaching structures within the SFA but only if he is convinced, on close inspection, that those in positions of power are not operating productively. More immediately, he is seeking to end what will shortly become the Scots' 12-year absence from a major championship."Sometimes when you put a spotlight on people, they flourish," he said. "But first let's put the spotlight on them and see if they can improve. I think a malaise has set into Scottish football and to get out of that, we just need to change attitudes more than anything else. We have to be a little more positive. We should have pride and passion, and protect ourselves when people criticise us. I feel I have an opportunity here to make not just a significant difference to the national team but to change the way people feel about Scotland."The former Scotland international — Levein won 16 caps during an injury ravaged career — revealed he had turned down jobs "from bigger clubs than Dundee United" during his last three years at Tannadice. At one point his move to the national post appeared set to descend into chaos as he was first forced to dig his car out of the snow in front of his home, before legal wrangling delayed his signing of a contract."I decided to be the Scotland manager a while ago, don't let the length of time this has taken today fool you," he added. "That delay was no indication at all of how much I wanted this job."That motivation resonates in the World Cup of 1990, in which Levein lined up in the heart of the Scotland defence for a victory over Sweden. "Without a doubt, playing in that World Cup was the highlight of my playing career," he recalled.ScotlandGeorge BurleyEwan Murrayguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Newcastle to dump Adidas for Puma Newcastle preparing to welcome in 2010 by announcing fresh kit deal with German sportswear giant Puma. telegraph.co.uk |
Leicester City 1 Ipswich Town 1: match report Ipswich scored after 20 seconds but Leicester recovered from the early setback to earn point on a cold afternoon at the Walkers Stadium. telegraph.co.uk |
Football Weekly Extra: Rock bottom for Rafa In this week's Football Weekly ... Extra James is joined by Sean Ingle, Barry Glendenning and Rob Smyth to discuss the week's football news.Liverpool's train-wreck of a season took yet another turn for the worse when the hapless Merseysiders werere dumped out of the FA Cup by managerless Reading. They were out-thought as well as out-fought by the Royals and the pod wonder when Rafa will finally be shown the door.Further afield, Jonathan Wilson is on the phone from Angola with an Africa Cup of Nations round-up, as he looks forward to the tomorrow's big Ghana v Ivory Coast game.The pod also reveal the true horror behind the Glazer's dealings at Man Utd with a little help from proper journalist David Conn, who explains where the Ronaldo money has gone and why Sir Alex Ferguson won't be getting his hands on it.There's a preview of the weekend's games and a run through the rest of the recent Premier League stories: Sol Campell's return to Arsenal, Brian Laws shock appointment at Burnley and John Terry's latest trumpet solo.Leave messages for us below or find us on Facebook and Twitter.James RichardsonPeter Sale guardian.co.uk |
Egypt defeat Cameroon in extra-time Egypt defeated 10-man Cameroon 3-1 after extra-time at the Ombaka Stadium to set up a rematch against regional rivals Algeria in the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations. foxsports.com.au |